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V. P. McVOY.

some GUIDE FOR FILLING MACHINES.

APPLICATION FILED FEB. 3| l9l6.

Patented Sept. 2, 1919.

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UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

VINCEN I. MOVOY, OF MOBILE, ALABAMA, ASSIGNOR 0F ONE-HALF TO JOSEPH WALSH, OF MOBILE, ALABAMA.

BOTTLE-GUIDE FOR FILLING-MACHINES.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Sept. 2, 1919.

Application filed February 3, 1916. Serial No. 75,963.

efficient and durable bottle guide readily M attachable to or usable in connection with bottling machines of any Well-known make.

It has for a further object to provide a bottle guide of few parts, those readily assembled and easily adjusted and by the use of which bottles are prevented from being chipped time is saved, as well as effecting a saving of syrup, syrup tubes and the carbonated water.

It has for a further object to provide a guide embodying a spring which normally is inoperative, that is, does not serve any useful function when the bottles are coming in average lengths and uniform size, but automatically comes into play in case the bottles vary in length.

Other objects and advantages of the in vention will hereinafter appear and the novel features thereof will be particularly pointed out in the appended claims.

The invention is clearly illustrated in the accompanying drawings, which, with the numerals of reference marked thereon, form a part of this specification, and in which Figure 1 is a side elevation of my improved bottle ide.

Fig. 2 is a substantially central longitudinal section through the same as applied to a bottle during ordinary use.

Fig. 3 is a similar view showing the relative position of parts when the guide is employed on a longer-necked bottle.

Fig. 4. is a cross section on the line 44 of Fig. 1, looking in the direction of the are row.

Fig. 5 is a perspective view of the gage employed for determining the proper adjustment of the syrup point while installing the guide. 1

Likenumerals of reference indicate like parts throughout the several views.

As is well-known to all familiar with the art of bottling, a long bottle is often receiving the syrup while a short bottle is receiving the carbonated water and the crown. Naturally, this would cause the machine to drop the guide further down than normal which results in breaking the bottle I'GCGlV-r ing the syrup or causing other damage to the syrup valve. By the employmentof a guide that is constructed to yield to compensate for the difference in the height of bottles, I avoid breakage of thebottle and damage to the syrup valve, and also provlde a guide well adapted for the varying lengths of bottles and one that will com- 'pensate for or take care of the average troubles of the bottler.

My improved guide, possessin the above advantages, is constructed as fol ows:

1 is the bell member or portion terminating in the outwardly extended flange 2, the

inner surface ofwhich is tapered at3, the 1 taper being on an lncline of substantially 451. The outer periphery of this flange may or may not beprovided with an elastic or yielding ring 4:, as shown in Figs. 2 and 3. This yielding ring, however, has beenfound in many instances desirable as it prevents chipping or damage to the bottles in member, as seen in Fig. 2. This sleeve member is longitudinally slittedat prefers ably diametrically opposite points, as seen at 9, 9, for a material portion of its length and at its upper end provided with the inwardly extended thickened portions 1:0 which are provided wi a longitudinal bore 11, as seen clearly in Fig. 4, for the passage of the syrup tube 12 of ordinary construction, the latter being provided at its oint with the delivery openings 13 and ,Wltll a screw-threaded portion 14, whereby it ,is; attached to the bottling machine in, the usual way. No claim however, is made in this application to this syrup tube or its attachin means. a K

1 The s eeve 6 is provided exterierly near plied 'interiorly of the sleeve, a plurality of projections 17, as seen in Figs. 1 and 4, which form abutments to limit the upward movement of the ring.

In applying the guide to the bottling machine, it is slipped up over the syrup tube 12 in the usual manner, the tube being received within the bore 11 of the thickened portions 10 and the split end of the sleeve is fastened to the syrup tube by means of screws or the like 18, the heads of which are seated in depressions or Cavities 19 in the one portion of the sleeve en a un screw-threaded o emn s in the opposite member and by tightening up these screws the split members of the sleeve form a clamp, as will be readily understood upon reference to Figs. 2 and 4:. By loosening these screws, the guide may be adjusted to any desired position along the length of the syrup tube. In order that the split ends of the sleeve may thus be loosened and tightened, the collar 15 is loose upon the sleeve,'being held against upward displacement by the projections 17 and, of course, held against undue movement in the other direction by the tension of the spring 16, yet this collar is capable of freedom of movement within certain limits upon the sleeve.

In use, the parts are in the relative positions in which they are shown in Fig. 2.

'Thefguide is placed over the mouth of the bottle in the usual way and the operation continues under normal conditlons. Now,

should the bottle which is receiving its crown be broken, or should it happen to be a shorter bottle than the bottle which is receiving the syrup, under ordinary conditions the bottle receiving the syrup also would be broken, but by the employment of my imgproved'bottle guide this cannot happen 'for should these conditions arise the bell memher 1 of my guide would simply be moved upward when it contacts with the bulge of the bottle, as seen in Fig. 3, the spring then compressed, thus allowing of the bottle receiving its syrup without any danger of breakage of the bottle or injury to the syrup tube or loss of syrup. The sleeve and bell members are so arranged as to at all times move coaxially so that the bell member cannot fail to move upward, but will not be movedby 'contact'of' the neck of the bottle with the rim or flange 2 upon. one side of the axial center of the sleeve. After the syrup has been introduced into the bottle and pressure of the bottle on the bell member removed, the spring returns the parts from the position in which they are seen in Fig. 3 to that shown in Fig. 1, ready for another operation. The guide continues to operate without relative movement of the parts until similar conditions again arise when a like operation takes place.

In Fig. 5 I have shown a gage member. 20 comprising a strip adapted to span the mouth of the bell member and having a projection 21 adapted for contact with the end of the syrup tube to determine the proper adjustment of the said tube before application of the guide to the bottling machine.

From the foregoing, it will be seen that 1 have devised an efiicient form of bottle guide capable of manufacture at small cost and adapted to serve thepurpose for which it is intended without attention on the part of the operator, and while the structural embodiment of the device as hereinbefore disclosed is what I at the present time consider preferable, it is evident that the same is sub ject to changes, variations and modifications in detail without departing from the spirit of the invention or sacrificing any of its advantages. I, therefore, do not intend to limit myself to the precise construction and arrangement of parts, etc., as herein shown and described, but reserve the right to make such variations and modifications as come properly within the scope of the appended claims.

What is claimed as new is 1. A bottle guide comprising a bottleengaging member, a sleeve telescopically connected therewith, a ring surrounding the sleeve, a spring interposed between said ring and the adjacent end of the bottle-engaging member and holding them distended under normal operative filling conditions, and means limiting the upward movement of said rin 2. A bottle guide comprising a bottleengaging member, a sleeve telescopically connected therewith, a ring surrounding the sleeve, a spring interposed between said ring and the adjacent end of the bottle-engaging member and holding them distended under normal operative filling conditions, means limiting the upward movement of said ring, and means on the sleeve constituting a clamp for clamping the holder to a syrup tube.

3. A bottle guide comprising a bottleengaging member, a sleeve telescopically received therein, a ring loosely embracing said sleeve, a spring surrounding the sleeve and held between said ring and the adjacent end of the bottle-engaging member and holding the said member and sleeve in fixed distended relation during the normal operative filling conditions, and means on the sleeve forming abutments for said ring to limit its upward movement.

a. A bottle guide comprising a bottle-engaging member, a sleeve telescopically re ceived therein, a ring loosely embracing said sleeve, a spring surrounding the sleeve and held between said ring and the adjacent end of the bottle-engaging means and holding said sleeve and member distended during normal filling operations, means on the sleeve forming abutments for said ring to limit its upward movement and means on the sleeve constituting a clamp for securing the guide to a syrup tube.

5. A bottle guide comprising a bottle-engaging member, a sleeve telescopically received therein and held in fixed relation thereto when in operative filling position and longitudinally slitted yielding means normally holding said member and sleeve in their relatively distended position, and means for clamping the slitted ends upon a syrup tube.

6. A bottle guide comprising a bottle-engaging member, a sleeve telescopically engaged therein and held in fixed relation thereto when in operative filling position and longitudinally slitted, means for preventing separation of the sleeve and bottleengaging member, and means for clamping the guide to a syrup tube.

7. A bottle guide comprising a bottle-engaging member, a sleeve telescopically received therein and held in fixed relation thereto when in operative filling position and longitudinally slitted and provided with inwardly extended thickened portions, yielding means normally holding said member and sleeve in their relatively distended position, and means engaging said thickened pog'tions to clamp the guide upon a syrup tu e.

8. A bell-shaped bottle guide comprising a bottle-engaging member adapted to loosely receive the neck, and to engage the bulge of a bottle'and having an internal shoulder, a tubular member fitted to slide within the bottle'engaging member and having a cooperating shoulder, a normally inoperative spring interposed between said members to normally hold the latter; in their distended position when in operative filling position, saidmembers arranged for coaxial movement when a bottle of more than the average length is used and means for clamping the tubular member to a syrup tube.

In testimony whereof I aflix my signature in presence of two Witnesses.

VINOEN P. MoVOY. Witnesses:

JOHN SGRIVENER, E. H. BOND.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents,

Washington, D. G. 

